Media objects, such as movies, videos, static displays, audio and the like, are well known forms of entertainment. Media objects are used in a wide variety of settings for a variety of purposes.
In an amusement park attraction media is a particularly useful tool. Often times, an amusement park attraction will use a media object to memorialize an experience for an individual, such as by taking a picture of that person on a ride. Traditionally, an image may be created for a guest or person from a ride by obtaining an image of an entire ride vehicle which often includes several individuals, more than one of which may be a stranger to a particular guest. Thus, the photo obtained, which often may be purchased by the guest, includes many unwanted elements and people. Some attractions include having an individual guest stand in front of a green screen. A camera is then manually moved or the individual's head is moved until a face is displayed in a stationary on-screen window in, for example, a kiosk staffed by an operator. The photo is taken and oval cut-out with the individual's head is removed from the green screen. This process is both cumbersome and inexact. Moreover, a guest desiring to use one of the foregoing images may often be burdened with the task of reviewing multiple images displayed on many screens to identify oneself, and further may be required to remember a picture ID number.
The internet is also a common media outlet. Many online services and websites are available for sharing media objects. Such services, for example, permit sharing of photographs, video clips, audio clips, and other media objects. Typically, such sites permit a user to upload a media object, whether sourced from a digital source or obtained from a hard copy which has been transposed into digital form, so that others can view, listen to or watch the media object, as well as engage in commentary or conversations regarding the media object.
Techniques for merging media objects, such as a set of images or image representations into a composite have also been explored. For example, systems have been used for producing pictures of human subjects with the head of one person superimposed upon the body of another person, or animal, etc. Superposition is normally accomplished mechanically by cutting around the outline of the head of a person, or electronically tracing around the head, in a first photograph and applying or superimposing the cutout head to a body in a second photograph. This produces a third photograph or electronic image. The superimposed image may also be animated or included in an animation, as has been done in recent years by, for instance, JibJab Media, Inc. These animations often include a static image of a head of a person superimposed on a body in an online animated video clip. The face or image used may be uploaded similar to the online services used for sharing media objects discussed above.
Face finding, facial recognition and image capture are used for a variety of purposes from security to entertainment. Face finding involves detecting a human face or faces in an image, such as a digital image and culling it out. Facial recognition may take a face and compare it to a database of other faces to pick the face from the database. Facial recognition may be used to recognize an individual's face in an image by comparison to a database of images or facefinding or faces. A computer system executes, facial recognition software to capture a user's face.
To date, however, pairing a face finding process, with other techniques such as superimposition to customize a media object for a person has not been accomplished. Accordingly, a method and system for customizing a media object using object finding is provided. Moreover, a customized process as described that may be further personalized by collecting personal information from an individual and using that information to further personalize the media element is also provided.